Personal Counseling

The Feminist Women's Health Center's Cliff Valley Clinic firmly supports a woman's right to choose the outcome of her pregnancy. Each woman is seen individually for a counseling session to establish that the decision to have an abortion is her own and that another person is not pressuring her to make a decision against her will.

Our counseling team includes three women with Master's degrees. Only those counselors or health advocates with optimum interpersonal and communications skills are part of this team, given the level of sensitivity and support offered at our clinic.

What counseling services are provided?

• Each woman's care includes personal counseling before the abortion, and additional counseling is available for her partner and family if needed. If a woman is firm in her decision regarding abortion, then the counselor reviews the informed consent forms, answers questions about the procedure, explores birth control options, if needed, and reviews after care instructions.
• If a woman is undecided, we can also offer more involved "decision-making" counseling that includes worksheets and other resources to aid her. Sometimes, we will send her home with worksheets and materials to continue the process. We will not perform an abortion on any woman who has not made the decision of her own free will or who is not yet ready to make a decision.

For further information and resources to assist women who are undecided or not ready to make their decision, click Pregnancy Options Information here. If a woman decides to continue her pregnancy, we will provide appropriate referrals for prenatal care or adoption.

If needed, we can offer post-abortion counseling for several sessions after the procedure. Some women who need to explore their post-abortion emotions and supportive resources may find help at the website Exhale: an after-abortion counseling talkline. (Will open in a new window.)

We also have two unique programs offering specialized counseling to accompany the clinical services. These are our Counseling & Fetal Anomaly Pregnancy Termination Program and our Assault/Incest Survivor Abortion Care program.

Are our counseling services sensitive to a woman's cultural framework?

We recognize that a woman's cultural framework, which reflects her religious, spiritual, and moral beliefs, affects each her life decisions. We are committed to cultural sensitive advocacy and counseling that is woman-centered, stepping inside her framework and respecting her life view providing her with a safe place to explore her decision. Through active listening and respectful dialogue with women we strive to increase our knowledge of the cultural impact of pregnancy, birth, abortion, and sexuality upon women of diverse origins.